PREPARING TO EMBARK: "Guidelines for the Journey"

    If you are interested in, or even curious about, a vision of faith that differs from the rigid and inflexible doctrines of much religion then I am eager to tell you about this web site and to describe how it is conceived so that you can navigate what is here. However, I must warn you before you begin your trek that there is challenge and danger here. Challenge to your thinking and, maybe, danger to some cherished tenets.

    First, the received orthodoxies of many aren't so much refuted as ignored. They aren't permitted to stake out the boundaries of what is found here. Many, if not most, of us know enough about what is voiced from the pulpits of such faith communities. Fences that claim to provide security for faith exclude far more often than they protect. Notions that begin as explanations end up as judgment against differences. Walls intended to provide safety from invaders and strangers exclude those who are no threat.

   Second, the attempt here is to "tell the story" of the human struggle for meaning and belonging. Or if you prefer it's about community. In the words of Diana Butler Bass I have set down a vision of "Christianity for the rest of us." I am leaving out the illustrations of communities she describes in her book. The advertisement above provides a way to get that book if you wish. And how the "Jesus story" meshes with the larger story is what I am pursuing. Barbara Brown Taylor's story of her search is absorbing. A by-line in the Christian Century, issue for May 29, interprets what she means by "leaving church" as "leaving to see what God is up to in the world and joining God there, delivering all the riches of the institution to those who need them most, in full trust that God will never leave the church without all that it needs to live." Bart Ehrman writes of other ways the story was told in past centuries in his book The Lost Christianities.

   You will need to know that the prevailing metaphor is that of a seeker or traveler on a "sacred journey." Along the way one sees, and is invited to enter, "rooms" where many issues are presented with civility and gentleness. So my hope and aim. I have tried to make navigating this lengthy site easy. Segments called "Inns Along the Way," "Room to Question" and "On The Road Again" have summaries or teasers to help you determine the "Rooms" of interest. If you are just curious to find out what is in the "Rooms" then you may wish to click on these three areas as you investigate what is here. Thanks for reading this far. Feel free to write me a note at BobSueSand@aol.com if you have interest. The rooms are obvious in part. Others deserve some elaboration. The "Guestrooms" include editorials by others as well as by me. The "Library" has on its "shelves" reviews of books compatible with the overarching vision. Some of the books reviewed are by Brian Swimme (The Universe Is A Green Dragon), Bernard Brandon Scott (Re-Imagining the World) and James Autry (Looking Around for God). One by Bill Moyers will be shelved soon.

    Finally, just as I paused to rest my case, issues presented themselves that I couldn't ignore. If you are on a "perpetual journey to an unreachable destination," you can't ignore what happens in the world around you. Issues presented by the re-election of Bush and his promise of tort reform, tax reform and the privatization of social security; the tragedy of the Iraq war, the tsunami and Katrina; the case for impeachment rooted in deceiving Congress and the people in taking us to war in Iraq, illegal domestic wire-tapping, covering up his war deceptions with the leak of misleading classified information, an act that became entangled with the outing of a CIA agent, a possible crime; ignoring the report of the Iraq Study Group, the Baker-Hamilton Commission, and proceeding with a proposed surge of 21,500 addditional troops to Iraq -- all these issues disturbed me profoundly. So I resumed my trek with what I call "On the Road Again." My continuing musings are there. Well, that's it. More than you wanted? Undoubtedly. Yet, I have sought to make this page parallel to a wine tasting. Lift a glass and read as much as you desire. So, be careful! Too much of either one could make you giddy. Bon appetite! (The Table of Contents lists the other items that are on the menu.)

    About the ads for books. Just under ONE HUNDRED books are pictured on the pages of this site! They are available from Amazon.com. If you wish to purchase one then click on the ad and follow the instructions given by Amazon. Of course, you have no obligation to purchase any of them! I have given them space for the convenience of the reader who may wish to add one or more to his or her library, at a discount.